Defining the fundamental learning issue for average students

A few years ago, I had a student who was kind of quiet in class but who had a certain intensity about him.  He was a middling student, ultimately ranking 12th out of 17 students in total.  Because this was the semester that my shoulder got infected, which caused me to stay 5 days in the hospital and then miss a couple of class sessions in the process, I was more lenient with the grading than I otherwise would have been.  This student was given a B+. 
The student expressed an interest in doing an independent study with me.  We talked about it and ultimately we agreed to do a readings course.   It was the only time I've taken on a student for an independent study who didn't get an A first in the regular course.  Below is the description of the independent study course that we needed to provide to the Econ department to get approval for the offering, suitably modified to protect the student's identity.  Note tha